


That Damned Time Drive

by imbeccacile



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Fluff, Gen, RipFic, What happened to Rip
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-22
Updated: 2018-04-22
Packaged: 2019-04-26 13:53:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,054
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14403504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/imbeccacile/pseuds/imbeccacile
Summary: The time drive is a finicky thing, and it never does what it's supposed to; Rip's supposed death included. The captain is sucked inside of it, and who should happen to find the drive but the old mechanic himself, Jax.





	That Damned Time Drive

**Author's Note:**

> No body = No death! <3

"Ironic, isn't it?" Rip shouted, looking up at the _thing_ he'd spent so many years of his life worrying over. "A time demon who's run out of time." The time drive against his fingers was burning a little, and as Mallus roared, Rip held it tighter. He wasn't sure what death was like, but if it meant he was able to see Miranda and Jonas again while protecting the Legends, he was ready.

He shut his eyes and the drive exploded.

****

When he came to, he realized he was lying on cold marble. Surprisingly, he didn't feel injured. In fact, he felt okay. Was this what death was like? He was still breathing, though he supposed it would stop eventually. Maybe if he got up, he'd see his wife and son again. Maybe if he got up, he'd find out what 'life after death' was really like.

Sitting up with a groan, Rip took in his surroundings. He gasped and scrambled to his feet, seeing that he was in the Time Master's Headquarters.

It was _impossible._ The Time Masters were gone. There was no way they could still be around...unless it was his own personal hell. But Rip didn't feel dead. His heart beat out of his chest as he looked around, eyes wide. He definitely _couldn't_ be dead, with how fast he was breathing. A quick glance down showed him he was wearing his old uniform. Nobody was around.

"Rip!" He turned his head and saw her - Miranda. She was grinning ear to ear, and he looked just as he remembered her when they first met. Hair pulled back into a tight bun, rosy cheeks - she was even wearing her Time Master uniform, too.

"Miranda," he whispered, not believing his own eyes. In seconds she had reached him and cupped her hands around his cheeks, pulling him close for a rather rough kiss. It felt so real. He wanted nothing more than to kiss her back, get lost in her like he used to, but something was...off. He kept his eyes open, and she seemed to sense something was wrong. She pulled away so that their foreheads touched, still grinning.

"Aw, is the big bad _Lieutenant_ scared of getting caught?" she asked teasingly, making his cheeks redden. He glanced away from her after a moment. He'd _been_ here before; this exact scene, when they first began dating.  They had just finished a simulation exercise...

"Miranda, something isn't _right_ ," he pleaded, wanting her to believe him. Something in his tone made her pause, smile fading. "I don't...this isn't real. I'm supposed to be dead. _You're_ supposed to be dead. Where are we, really?" At his words, she pouted, slowly letting go of his collar and backing up a bit. She sighed, looking down.

"I understand if you don't want to try and make this work," she began bashfully, looking up at him through her eyelashes. "I just really care about you, Rip." Rip backed up into the wall then, shaking his head. That had been exactly what she said when they first decided to date, and he'd been apprehensive.

No. This wasn't real. "It's a memory?" he whispered weakly, looking up at the ceiling. Upon the words leaving his lips, he began to feel very light-headed, and as his knees buckled, the last thing he saw was Miranda's form slowly fading away.

****

The next time he awoke, the floor beneath Rip was cold.

His eyes snapped open and he very abruptly sat up, eyes surveying his new surroundings. _The Waverider_. His ship.

He was on the bridge, and it was...quiet. Besides a mild headache, he had no injuries that he could feel, and as he slowly got to his feet, he looked around. From what he could see, he was alone.

Slowly, the memory of how he'd gotten here came back to him. Miranda, the Time Masters - it didn't make any sense. Why would he live through one of his best memories? Glancing up at the ceiling, he swallowed, adjusting his long coat. Perhaps it was silly to try, but...

"Gideon?" he croaked, resting his hands on the controls as he had done many times before. There was no answer. He cleared his throat and tried again, this time clearer and louder. "Gideon!"

Still nothing. He lowered his chin to his chest, trying to think. He should be dead - and he still didn't exactly rule that out - but if he was, why did he feel so alive?

"You're still nothing without me, I see." A familiar voice appeared from behind Rip, and he sighed in relief, whirling around to see her. Gideon stood there in her human form, exactly how he remembered her from his own mind, smiling back at him. "Hello, Captain."

"Oh, Gideon," he sighed again, shaking his head. "You have no idea how happy I am to see you."

Gideon smiled, clasping her hands behind her back. "And I, you. I knew that fighting Mallus couldn't be the last time I'd see you." Rip's eyes widened in unspoken question. So this wasn't a memory or a figment of his imagination. This was real. She knew about Mallus. "Yes," she answered, raising her eyebrows. "This is real. You aren't dead, Captain," she promised. Sighing, she glanced down at the floor. "When the time drive reacted, it didn't explode. The force of it pulled you - and Mallus - inside, and then it transported itself to another time, another place. But don't worry; Mallus has already escaped, but you did your job. You've been here for about a week, and the Legends managed to defeat him."

Rip tried to wrap his mind around it. _A week?_ That damned time drive - it had always done the wrong thing. Briefly, he remembered the time it had exploded and give Jax so much radiation that he would have died from it, had Martin not thought to send him back in the jumpship. He supposed he should be glad that the time drive did manage to keep Mallus long enough, and that the Legends had done exactly what he had hoped they would. He felt a short surge of pride - and then it was replaced by more confusion.

"If I'm...not dead," he began slowly, gears turning in his mind, "then how am I to get out?" He had never heard of someone being trapped inside of the time drive, let alone how to get out of it. Gideon sighed, shaking her head lightly.

"That I do not know," she admitted, taking a few steps toward him. "I believe that somebody on the outside will have to let you out." His eyebrows furrowed into more question. "Luckily, I figured that the time drive has landed a few miles west of Jefferson Jackson's house, and with any luck, he will hear it." She smiled. "The time drive is a finicky thing, Captain - I am sure that Mr. Jackson will not be able to stay away from its calling."

Rip swallowed, leaning back against the controls as he looked away. "How is he to know I am even in here?" Jax was one of the few he knew he could trust with all of his being; the boy was brave and kind, and he was respectful. He cared about time as much as Rip did.

Gideon smiled, reaching over to dust off his shoulder. "He will know," she promised. "Now get some rest, Captain." As the words left her mouth, Rip began feeling drowsy. He wanted to protest, in case Jax needed him, but the time drive - and Gideon - seemed to have other plans for him. His eyes slipped closed and his knees buckled, and he fell back down on the floor.

****

Jax hadn't been able to sleep for a week.

Nightmares weren't anything new to him, of course - even his wife was accustomed to him waking in cold sweat in the middle of the night. She'd get up to make him tea and calm him down.

But this was different.

Every time Jax closed his eyes, he heard voices. At the beginning of the week, he hadn't known what they were saying or who they belonged to. But he tossed and turned all night, ending up with only an hour or two of rest.

It continued for a full week. By the end of it, he began listening to the voices. One of them was Gideon's. Another was Rip's. Another was a female's voice he didn't recognize. They were overlapping each other and he could never make out what they were saying. After a full week, he lay, listening, and that night, he could hear one thing; "Rip needs you."

It had been Gideon's voice. It was three a.m. and Jax sat up straight, breathing hard. Glancing down at his wife, he saw she was still sleeping soundly, and swallowed. Rip...Rip was dead. Why was he hearing their voices? He wanted it to stop.

Getting out of bed slowly, he pulled on the nearest clothes he could find, his boots, and his coat. Taking one last look at his wife, he stepped outside into the night air. He wasn't really sure what he was doing, but he felt he needed to do something. There was a reason Rip and Gideon were talking to him, and he wasn't crazy.

Slowly, he exhaled, watching his breath swirl into the air. He let his eyes slip closed, let himself listen. Wait. He heard them again - the voices. Even if he couldn't make out what they were saying, they were getting clearer now. He must be doing the right thing. Glancing back at his house, he nodded determinedly. Whatever it meant, Rip needed him.

So he walked.

He walked a long time, every so often pausing to concentrate on the voices. When he reached the edge of a forest, he stopped and could make out some words. "Time. Rip. Waverider. Drive." He opened his eyes and started on the path, making sure to be quiet and careful, looking around at every small noise.

As Jax headed down the pathway, the voices grew louder. He didn't even have to close his eyes to hear them anymore. As he turned on the path, he could see an object lying a few feet away, a few wisps of smoke escaping it. Frowning he inched closer, and when he was about a foot away, he could hear that the voices were coming from it - not from his mind anymore. He squinted, just barely making it out in the darkness.

"The time drive?" he whispered, crouching beside it. What did that have to do with Rip?

"Rip is inside." A voice so clear filled the air that Jax scrambled backward in surprise. As if it had been reading his mind. "Rip is inside. You must help." It was...Gideon's voice, but Jax didn't think she was truly there. She stopped talking.

Jax slowly crawled back over to the time drive, gently picking it up to place on his lap. He hadn't seen this thing in awhile, but it had certainly given him a lot of trouble when he had been the mechanic. Frowning deeper, eyebrows furrowing, he shook his head. "How is Rip stuck in this thing?" he asked, mostly to Gideon but also to himself. He hadn't thought that was possible. But it seemed Gideon was done giving him answers.

Turning it over, he could see a few strange looking buttons on it, now that the radiation was gone. He swallowed, shutting his eyes. "Rip, if you're in there, this better get you out." With that, he opened his eyes again and pressed the buttons. For a moment, it seemed that nothing was going to happen. Then, a beam of brilliant yellow light shot out of the drive, making it burn against Jax's lap and fingers. He dropped it and crouched, shielding his eyes.

****

Rip felt a vigorous shaking on his left arm.

He wanted to tell whoever it was to bugger off, but his mouth didn't cooperate with him. His eyelids felt glued shut, but he could feel...dirt and grass beneath him. That was different from the Waverider. Whoever was shaking him was also calling his name. Their tone of voice was urgent, and for that reason alone he felt like he should at least be trying to wake up.

So he scrunched his face together, letting out a barely audible groan, which made the yelling stop for a brief moment. This time, he could hear, "Come on, Rip!" He prepared himself, then pried his eyes open, gasping deeply. His wide eyes found a dark blue sky above him, and...

"Jax," he croaked, swallowing. Slowly, the memory of speaking to Gideon came to him. Jax had found him. He had escaped the time drive.

"Rip," Jax repeated, looking and sounding relieved. "Thank God you're okay." Rip frowned a little as Jax stood up, offering his hand. Was it just him, or did Jax look a little...older?

He took Jax's hand and allowed himself to be pulled up, every muscle in his body sore. Groaning a little, he shook his head.

"How did...How did you find me?" he asked, glancing down at the time drive sitting beneath them. Jax followed his gaze and decided it would probably be best to just leave that there. As Rip took a step forward, he stumbled a bit and Jax caught his arm, supporting him with a worried expression.

"I heard voices. All week. I heard Gideon's tonight. She was tellin' me to save you." Jax took Rip's arm and draped it over his shoulders, allowing his former captain to place some of his weight on his shoulders. Rip didn't want to be helped - but his legs felt so weak, and they shook with each step, that he was forced to. They were both quiet for a long time. Then, something occurred to Rip. An answer he hadn't gotten from Gideon.

"Mallus - You and the rest of the Legends defeated him?"

To Rip's surprise, Jax let out a low chuckle. "Yeah. It was the weirdest thing I've ever seen. Amaya said somethin' about the totems needing to come together, and when they did that they, ah...they transformed into a giant Beebo and killed Mallus."

Rip was surprised for a moment, then chuckled a little himself. "Of course," he muttered, mostly to himself. The Legends didn't do things by the book; they did things in their own way. "Well, I'm glad to hear it. I knew you could." Jax smiled, and as they walked, Rip watched him. He wondered how many years had passed since Jax left the team, at least for him. Since Martin had died. "So, Mr. Jackson, what have you been up to recently? I suppose you don't exactly defeat time demons every day anymore."

"Nah," Jax laughed softly, shaking his head. "I actually...fell in love. Got married. Now I have a daughter, and we visit the Steins all the time." Rip raised an eyebrow - Jax was really keeping it broad.

"Well, congratulations," he said genuinely. Despite the situation, he was very happy that Jax had managed to find happiness again. He'd heard all about the fight on Earth X, and it had taken him awhile to grieve over his lost friend. He couldn't imagine how Jax had been feeling.

Just as Rip had begun wondering how far Jax had actually had to walk to get to him, they approached a neighborhood. The sky was slowly beginning to lighten. Jax pointed at a house a few feet away. "There's mine. You can stay with us, till you get your strength back. Then we'll get you back to the Bureau." Rip blinked.

"Thank you, Jax." Now that it wasn't so dark, he took a moment to look at Jax. The small scruff of beard, knowing smile, tired eyes. The young man probably hadn't been getting much sleep as it was, with a baby, and now he had to deal with Rip in the early morning. He felt a surge of guilt but tried to repress it. There was nothing he could do about it.

As they stepped inside the small but cozy one-story house, Jax helped Rip sit down on the couch in the living room. "You look like a mess," Jax sighed conversationally - not meant as an insult, but rather that Rip looked like he had gone through hell and back -and Rip surely felt that way. Rip chuckled a little, opening his mouth to respond when a child's crying from down the hallway interrupted him. "I got her, honey!" Jax called, making sure his wife wouldn't get up while he already was. He smiled down at Rip and walked down the hall. He returned a moment later with an adorable, babbling baby. "Rip, this is Martina. Martina, this is Rip."

Martina blinked, staring at the stranger. "Hello," Rip replied uncertainly, raising a hand to wave. He didn't miss the namesake. The girl waved back and bounced in her father's arms.

"Guess she's up for the day," Jax sighed, slowly sitting on the couch a few inches from Rip. Rip blinked, then looked at Jax. "You wanna hold her?"

Rip hesitated for a moment, but taking another look at Jax, he nodded slowly. "I can care for her if you'd like to rest," he offered, feeling as though he must pay Jax back somehow. The younger raised an eyebrow incredulously.

"Really?" he asked, as the baby reached towards Rip, already seeming to like him. Perhaps she liked his voice. Jax smiled lightly and handed her over to Rip, where he balanced her on his lap, both staring at each other. He smiled and she smiled back. Jax shook his head unbelievingly. "Guess you're good with kids," he said with a yawn, leaning back against the couch. It looked like he'd meant to say something else, but Jax was asleep the moment his eyes closed.

Rip blinked and reached for the blanket beside him, covering Jax with it. He remembered how tiring parenting was; especially when Jonas had been a baby. With that, Rip leaned back against the couch, and told Martina stories about her father and about Martin, until she fell asleep against his chest. Rip wasn't far behind.


End file.
